


Roadside Affliction

by Sharcade



Series: The Two Things Connor is Afraid Of [2]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Comfort, Fear, Ficlet, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Phobias, Rain, Short, Short One Shot, Storms, Thunder and Lightning, Thunderstorms
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-27
Updated: 2018-06-27
Packaged: 2019-05-28 06:07:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,159
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15042419
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sharcade/pseuds/Sharcade
Summary: Connor gets into a situation he would have preferred to avoid.(Please read the first instalment of this story or you will be very confused.)





	Roadside Affliction

Connor was absolutely exhausted.

It wasn't common for androids to get tired, and they didn't quite get tired in the same ways that humans did. Exhaustion tended to be emotional, with androids needing to rest to diminish stress. Connor worked in a fairly tense line of work, so he tended to get tired fairly often, and even more often than that, he tended to fall asleep in Hank's car. That brought him to now, where he was fluttering in and out of consciousness in Hank's passenger seat.

Hank understood Connor's exhaustion, it happened every now and again, and Hank would try to stay as quiet as possible on those drives home so that Connor might get some rest. He was sticking to that same routine tonight, the only sounds those of him driving and rain pattering against the windshield. Connor's head was rested against the window, his eyes closed. Hank's own eyes were fixed on the road, it was honestly starting to concern him how hard the rain was pouring down. He could barely see a foot in front of him on the road, and he knew if Connor were alert right now, he would be reprimanding Hank on safe driving conditions.

Hank managed to get a few minutes more in, he really did want to get home, but after a few particularly concerning slides across the road, it was clear things were getting unsafe. Sighing in defeat, Hank pulled the car over, parking and folding his arms curmudgeonly. He was going to have to wait out the worst of the rain on the roadside. In reality, the roads were probably navigable, but Hank found that he didn't take many chances with driving these days. 

"Hank?"

Hank glanced over as Connor sat up straight, rubbing his eyes and blinking sleepily.

"Why are we stopped?" Connor mumbled, looking out the window at the incredible downpour.

"Don't feel comfortable drivin' in this."

Connor nodded tiredly, closing his eyes and relaxing against the headrest once again. 

"Sorry for wakin' you up." Hank yawned, reclining his chair back and lying down flat. "Tried to keep quiet."

"An apology was not necessary, my rest was disturbed by the stopping of the car, not by noise." Connor explained, though his pragmatic words were slurred with his tiredness. "I should be able to get back to sleep promptly."

And then the thunder started.

As soon as the first burst of thunder had shot through the car, Connor had bolted upright so quickly his head had collided solidly with the roof, his LED blaring red. His stress levels had spiked, his eyes instantly snapping to the bold flash of lightning out side the window as he rubbed his head.

"Lieutenant?" Connor began, his voice trembling just enough to notify Hank that something was very wrong.

Shit. The storm.

"Hey. Get back here."

Connor complied quickly, reclining his seat and laying back with Hank. Hank reached over carefully, grabbing Connor's hand and running his thumb over the android's knuckles gently. Fear was awful, Hank knew that much, feeling unsafe was a horrible thing. Hell, he had pulled over his car in the middle of the night just because he was worried about skidding on the road, he understood fear. He wondered if Connor truly understood fear, or if he just knew that he didn't like it.

"You okay kid?"

The thunder crashed once again, Connor's grip on Hank's hand tightening as he startled, sympathy flashing through Hank as Connor's breaths staggered.

"I-I am fine."

"You sure?"

Hank could feel the slight tremble in Connor's hand. He knew Connor was afraid of storms, that much was obvious, but usually whenever a storm occurred, Connor had the privilege of being able to climb into Hank's bed for the night and know that he was safe at home. This was different, this was being stranded with only a thin sheet of  _metal_ between himself at the elements.

Connor was quiet, though Hank could feel the slight tremble in Connor's hand. He held the android's hand tighter, sighing.

"You're okay."

"I know."

"Seriously Connor,  _you're okay._ Nothing's gonna happen. I gotcha."

Connor didn't respond, glancing over at Hank slightly and hesitating with his words.

"...L-Lieutenant?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm afraid of storms."

"I know, kid, I know." Hank soothed, rubbing Connor's hand lightly with his thumb. "I know."

Anybody could tell Connor was afraid of storms just by looking at how he acted during them, but the fact that Connor was willing to say it out loud to Hank made the man a little proud, he couldn't help it. Connor was always bold, always strong, always stoic. Connor was never afraid, not in front of others.

"Hey Connor?"

"Yes?"

"That was pretty fuckin' brave."

"Wh-What?"

"Telling me you were afraid like that. That was pretty brave. Proud of you, kid."

He felt Connor's grip loosen slightly before tightening again. 

"Thank you Lieutenant." he mumbled.

Another crash of thunder broke through the quiet, Connor letting out a startled yelp as lighting burst across the sky. Hank could hear the android's quick breathing, his pulse racing as he tried his best to regain his composure.

"Connor." 

The android's eyes snapped to Hank, the lieutenant nodding at the back seat of the car and raising an eyebrow. Hurriedly, Connor nodded, scrambling into the back seat with Hank following a little more carefully. Hank sat down, pulling Connor in closely as Connor clung to him, trembling in his arms. 

"You're okay, kid. It'll pass and we'll go home." Hank coaxed, stroking Connor's hair.

If Hank had been asked a year ago what he thought of androids, the answer would be simple: Inhumane machines. Shitty plastic made so people could tote them around like fancy dogs. Worthless. If he had been asked now, the answer would be so different that it surprised even Hank himself. Androids were people. That's what he thought of them. If you had asked him about Connor a year ago, the answer would be just as simple: Connor was  _annoying_. Always talking, always asking questions, always pushing his last thread of patience until Hank snapped at him, he was a nuisance. Now, Connor was practically a son to him. Connor was the happiness in his life. All of it. He was willing to soften his edges a bit for that.

"Th-Thank you Hank."

"Eh?"

"I know I can be...inconvenient." Connor mumbled against Hank's chest, wiping his eyes before tightening his grip on Hank's shirt. "Thank you for tolerating me anyway."

"Well I wasn't just gonna leave you to have a fuckin' heart attack in the passenger seat." Hank muttered defensively, looking away.

"Thank you for that."

"You don't gotta thank me for being decent."

"Th-Thank you for  _everything_."

Hank paused, letting the words set in for a moment before rubbing Connor's back lightly, the android breathing quietly against him as he tried to maintain this brief moment of calm.

"Don't worry about it, kid."

 


End file.
